Gippal's Troubles
by ThirteenStrikes
Summary: Gippal gets really depressed all of a sudden. Obviously something or someone is bothering him. Will Baralai and Rikku be able to help him solve his problems? GIPPALxPAINE. Seriously there aren't enough Gippaine or Barikku fanfics out there.
1. Prologue

Author's Note:  
Hello! Yes, I've been um...not writing ffx2 fics for a while now...  
I've always had this idea at the back of my head, and I feel like writing a story focused on Gippal and Paine... so here is the start of another fanfic!! Pairings are: Gippaine and Barrikku. But mainly and mostly Gippaine. I have a feeling that this will be a really interesting story. :D

Disclaimer: Square Enix owns FFX2, and I don't.

* * *

PROLOGUE

It was one of those days when he felt so bored – maybe depressed even – that he gave the praetor a call and begged him to join him for a beer or two at the Mi'ihen Bar. At first, he meant for them to hang out and talk about the old days when they were a team, traveling together…laughing together… But gradually, their meetings became more frequent, and our praetor was beginning to notice a slight change in the behavior of his friend.

It was Wednesday again, and like a few days ago, Baralai knew he was expected to be at the Bar by 9 in the evening. He had to admit, going out so often was not doing him or his work good. And drinking always gave him headaches the next morning, no matter how much or how little he drank. The elders had complained once, and he was driven to work twice as fast as he originally did. The praetor knew very well that these recurrent meetings would have to come to an end sooner or later.

_I'd have to tell him tonight._ he thought with regret. _I hope he'll understand…_

Gippal was his best friend, and he enjoyed talking with him and listening to his comical remarks. But he's got a job that cannot allow for so much leisure time. Though Gippal may be right when he told him not to overwork himself, Baralai blindly resented and, like every other responsible and mindful leader, prioritized work over everything else.

Baralai was deep in thought as he sat at the bar waiting for his friend. He hadn't even noticed when Gippal entered and plopped down on the seat beside him with a goofy grin on his face.

"Hey Lai…" said the Al Bhed half-heartedly, in surprising contrast to his grin a second ago.

Baralai snapped out of his reverie and looked up at him. "Hey," he replied.

They both ordered their drinks and sat soberly for a while, each waiting for the other to speak and strike up an interesting subject for a conversation. Their alcohol soon came, and as they sat drinking quietly, no one said a word.

Silence was a rare thing between them, and such a long pause had never happened during their meetings. It was obvious that something was bothering the both of them.

Baralai watched as Gippal hurriedly finished his first drink and order another from the bartender. He knew he was planning to get pretty wasted tonight, and so decided to speak out first and tell him before he got too drunk to understand or remember.

"Gip, I gotta tell you something…" he started out hesitantly, trying to find a way to break it to him without really offending.

"Shoot," he replied, before taking a gulp from his beer.

As he watched his friend, Baralai finally decided to get it out and over with as soon as possible.

"Gippal, I don't think I can come out and drink with you anymore… I mean, at least not twice every week. I'm getting busier and busier with work, and I cannot afford to spend my time like this," he said with a straight and serious face. He didn't tell him the other reason was that these meetings usually didn't go anywhere, and Gippal always seemed to appear depressed every time, unlike how lively he used to be back then.

The Al Bhed only glanced at him once, then returned his attention to the glass he was holding.

"Sure, whatever…" he murmured, almost too soft for the praetor to hear.

Baralai was slightly taken aback at his calm response. He was expecting more of a reply – at least a greater reaction that what was given. Then he realized that Gippal's trouble was quite crucial – at least crucial enough to make him so depressed.

"Gippal, what's wrong?"

He only drank from his glass and remained quiet. Baralai was sure he had heard him, and waited patiently for his reply.

After a few minutes, Gippal turned toward him in a half-drunken manner, and said solemnly, "Lai…you've gotta help me…"

Baralai grew alert, for his friend looked as if he was about to break into a sob.

"Why, what is it?" the praetor asked with concern.

Gippal paused for a moment and looked away. He drank down the rest of his beer and slammed the glass on the counter.

"Lai…I'm sorry for always gettin' you out and keepin' you from your work… I'm really sorry… It's just… Nowadays… I….I just feel really restless," he told him with frustration in his voice.

From his tone, Baralai knew he wasn't finished and waited for him to continue.

"I dunno…" he said dejectedly. "It's like… These past few weeks… I thought I just missed the old days when we were all chillin' and stuff…but I guess it's not that. It's something more…"

Gippal was obviously having a hard time putting his thoughts into words. But the next thing he said was all that was needed.

"…I miss her."

Baralai understood from that point on.

* * *

Reviews are always welcomed, by the way. :p


	2. The Al Bhed and the Yevonite

Because you guys are so very awesome for reading and reviewing this fanfic, I've decided to update a little early. :) Well, I really wanna thank those who've been reading, even if some of you hadn't really reviewed. Means a lot to me. :D

Okay.. Just an advanced warning... MAJOR Barikku-ness here. I can't help it.

* * *

The Al Bhed and the Yevonite

Baralai tapped his pen on his desk nervously. It was early in the morning, but he was already busy working in his office. For a position such as the praetor of New Yevon, it wasn't unwonted.

But today, in contrast to all of the other days, he couldn't concentrate enough to work. His meeting with Gippal last night was obviously bothering him, and he couldn't get his mind on anything else.

Baralai was a very logical and reasonable person. With every situation he was in, he'd measure all the factors carefully, and then carry out the necessary tasks from the greatest to the least importance. It was how he worked in his office. It was how his mind worked.

But now, the most important task seemed to be helping his best friend out. Baralai had thought it through conscientiously, and it made much more sense to him to help Gippal first before anything else. The primary reason was that Gippal was his close friend, and that at times of trouble he had always been there for him. Now, it was Baralai's turn to help his friend out. Gippal was in a very critical state, and it seemed as if the poor man was on the edge of breaking down!

Aside from being his best buddy, the other reason was that Gippal wouldn't stop bothering him until his problem was solved. If his troubles were all gone, and if everything worked out as planned, the Al Bhed would be happy and wouldn't bother him anymore, and the poor busy praetor could continue with his work.

Now isn't that reasonable enough?

_Alright. I'm going to help Gippal solve this problem._ thought Baralai decidedly.

He sat there for a while, deep in thought.

_Okay… Now just HOW in the name of Yevon am I going to do this??_

After moments of thinking, he concluded that he would have to brainstorm with Gippal tomorrow. He had told him to come to Bevelle to see him in the afternoon.

Meanwhile, as Baralai sat staring blankly at the papers on his desk, somebody knocked at his office door.

When he looked up, he saw a pretty Al Bhed girl stick her head inside.

Oh, yes, I've forgotten to mention that our praetor, as busy as he seemed to be, and as busy as he was _supposed_ to be…had gotten himself a girlfriend.

It's a long story really… He had never even dreamed of having any affairs. But one day, Cid decided it was important for the Al Bheds to have appropriate formal communication with the Yevonites at Bevelle, and so, hired a messenger to do the simple job of sending letters – his own daughter.

Of course…who knew it would all lead to _this_??

"May I come in, Praetor Baralai?" she asked in her usual playful tone. In the office, she almost always addressed to him as formally as she could.

He couldn't hold back a smile.

He watched as she cheerfully hopped in with an envelope in her hand. She closed the door behind her carefully and casually made her way towards his seat. Without hesitation, she made herself comfortable and sat down on his lap with a childish grin on her face.

"Here is a letter from Cid, Mr.Praetor, sir," she told him in a very formal tone, in complete contrast to the intimate position they were in.

Baralai sighed as he took it from her and dropped it on his desk without a thought. He still couldn't keep himself from smiling at her antics, no matter how many times she had come in and done the same.

"And here is a special message from his daughter," she whispered in his ear, almost seductively.

Without saying anything more, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Baralai really couldn't resist. No matter how much work he had, he'd still have time for Rikku. He was uncertain at first. Everyone knew he prioritized work over anything else. But he found the Al Bhed girl so very irresistible. He'd think of her day and night, nonstop. Sure work was important to him…but he had a life. He couldn't waste it by killing himself from overworking. Before Rikku, Baralai was really going nowhere. He was overstressed; his health was deteriorating. Everyone in the temple knew – the guards, the servants, the monks…and word eventually got to the elders as well. They knew it wasn't doing him good, and everyone had wished that he would just…find time to relax; find time for himself, away from work. That was when the bubbly Al Bhed girl came into the scene. Like an angel, she came out of nowhere and began helping the praetor out of his wrecked state, almost without noticing it herself. Yes, she was only a simple messenger, but they were acquaintances. Having a friend visit you from time to time is always something welcomed. She'd stay for several minutes to talk with him, sometimes involuntarily cheering him up with her good spirits. And of course…they couldn't help but grow fond of each other…subconsciously and eventually, falling in love.

(flashback)  
Baralai was working in his office as usual one day, expecting Rikku's regular visits. When she arrived, he asked her for whatever Cid sent this time. The Al Bhed girl only smiled and said she had nothing. She only came to see him. Ever since her first visit, she had been curiously exploring everything in his office – examining the books on his shelf…the items on his desk…the intricate Yevon designs on the ceiling… Baralai couldn't prevent him self from stepping away from his work and following Rikku around the room to answer her spontaneous questions. Soon, the bubbly Al Bhed found her way to the praetor's office chair. She plopped down and sat at the desk with a sense of pride and delight, acting as if _she_ was the praetor of New Yevon. Baralai laughed at her childish actions and walked towards her with his arms crossed.

"Excuse me, only the _real_ praetor can sit on that chair," he told her, trying to sound strict and commanding.

Rikku looked up at him with eyebrows raised. "I AM the praetor!" she said with a grin. She stuck her tongue out at him playfully.

"Are you sure you are? For a while I thought I was," said Baralai with amusement. He spun the chair so that she faced him and placed his hands on each of its arms.

"Well not anymore! The rule is: once you get out of the chair, you're not praetor any longer!" she explained, her smile growing wider.

"So I'll just have to kick you out," he replied, and at the same time, he began to poke her sides and tried to tickle her.

"Ah! Stop it you meanie!" she exclaimed as she squirmed in her seat and laughed uncontrollably.

She soon took hold of both of his hands and made him stop. Over the exchange Baralai had unconsciously leaned closer, and now his face was merely inches away from hers.

Rikku looked into his eyes. The amusement earlier had now been covered with curiosity and questions. He returned her gaze; his soft hazel eyes locked with her green spiral ones.

Suddenly, a strong desire to kiss him filled her. And so…she gave into it, and closed the gap between them…shutting her eyes and pressing her delicate lips against his.

Baralai didn't have to think twice before he reciprocated and kissed back. There was something at the back of his head that had been telling him that he had a thing for her. He just didn't admit it, until now.

When they pulled back, it was unquestionable that they blushed profusely. They didn't even know what to say. Feelings only speak for themselves.

Several moments after the exchange and staring at each other, they snapped out of their trance. Baralai cleared his throat for no reason and stepped back, and Rikku tugged at her braids involuntarily as she stood up from her seat. They stood awkwardly, without saying anything for a while. Then the Al Bhed girl soon realized that she had to go run other errands for her father.

"Um…I gotta...go..." she said tentatively, keeping her eyes on the floor.

"Oh…uh…okay…" Baralai managed to spit out, rubbing the back of his neck habitually.

He watched as Rikku quickly made her way out of his office, closing the door softly behind her.

That was the beginning of endless nights without being able to sleep, as well as restlessness without concentration at work. But both knew that they'd still have to see each other, when Cid needed his daughter to send something to the praetor. Their meetings after became brief; full of awkwardness and uneasiness between two blushing faces. Until one meeting, it became too unbearable.

"I'm…sorry…" said Rikku all of a sudden, as she stood opposite of him, in front of his desk.

Baralai only looked up with questioning eyes. But she wouldn't look at him, and kept her eyes down.

"…I didn't mean to…….um…….the kiss………." she trailed off, her cheeks turning red. She really didn't know how she was going to say this.

Baralai blushed as soon as she mentioned it, but felt that he had stayed quiet for too long, and that he needed to speak with her. He smiled slightly, and stood up from his seat and walked towards her.

"Well, I'm not sorry at all," he whispered into her ear softly.

Rikku looked up at him. And when she did, Baralai kissed her.  
(end of flashback)

Now, as she sat on his lap, he held her close and completely forgot about the work left on his desk. It was a good thing, especially for a stressed out praetor like he was.

"How've ya been today?" asked the Al Bhed girl as she pulled back from their hug and looked into his hazel colored eyes.

"Hmmm…..not so good. But now that you're here, a lot better," he replied with a smile.

Rikku giggled childishly. "Why? You've got a lot of work again?" she asked. She never liked how he always had so much to do. But she knew she had to respect him as well as his job.

Baralai's smile soon dropped. "Rikku…" he started as he began contemplating whether he should tell her or not.

_Gip won't mind….or would he?_ he thought to himself.

He watched as Rikku looked at him with questioning eyes, waiting patiently for him to continue.

_Well…She could help us. She'd help us talk to _her_._

Baralai sighed and looked up at the Al Bhed girl.

"Don't tell anyone… Gippal has love troubles."

* * *

Ooookay. I hope you all understood this chapter. Especially the flashback part. Hope it wasn't too confusing.  
I apologize for the Barikku. I didn't even want to include that much, but they're freakin together in this story! Of course the author is responsible for _how_ they got together in the first place...

**NOTE**: You may wonder why Baralai has time for Rikku, and no time for Gippal. (LOL) Well, the reason, _I think_, is because he was first in a relationship with Rik, and she already evened out the work:no-work ratio. But if you add a Gippal into the situation, then the amount of time Lai spends on not working would be greater than the amount of time he does spend on working.

Anyways...reviews or criticisms or whatever are always welcomed. :)


	3. The First Step

Hello my dear readers! (Gosh that sounds gay.) But I'm just really grateful that you haven't abandonned me yet. If you haven't noticed, I don't have much fans. :D

Early update!

* * *

The First Step

The very next day, Rikku and Baralai sat waiting in his office for their expected guest: the leader of the Machine Faction.

When Baralai told his girlfriend about Gippal, she almost fell off his lap laughing. Of course she couldn't help it. They were talking about the "ladies man" here. _The_ Gipster. She was completely surprised that he couldn't handle his own love problems, and that he was coming to her barely experienced boyfriend for help. But Baralai made Rikku promise not to laugh at his friend when he arrives, and made her promise to help them out.

"I still can't believe it though!" she exclaimed as she paced around the office, examining all of Baralai's possessions that she had probably seen before.

Baralai heaved a sigh. "Actually…me neither," he told her. "I thought he knew how to do all this stuff!"

"Well, I never thought he liked _her_!" she said, smiling. "I mean…they're so different."

"Hmm, that's true…"

Rikku giggled. "Guess Mr. I'm-so-handsome-and-sexy was bluffing the whole time!"

Both of them reminisced on how he'd always hit on random girls wherever they went together. He'd seemed so confident, and at the same time, girls would always fall head over heels for him.

"But I guess she's different…" suggested the praetor, thinking deeply. "That's why he treats her differently…"

Rikku nonchalantly plopped down on his lap. "Yeah… I guess so. She's not like other girls, ya know?" said the Al Bhed with a grin. "Maybe it's cuz she's so secretive and mysterious all the time…"

"Mmm hmm…" nodded Baralai in agreement.

"But she's really nice deep down inside. I know it!" shouted Rikku with a smile. "I just hope Gippal will be able to win her heart…"

Suddenly, there was a knock on the office door. Both Rikku and Baralai immediately gave each other a look. The praetor gently patted her back, signaling for her to get up.

"Hey Lai, it's me…" they recognized his muffled voice.

"Um…Come in Gippal."

* * *

"Oh come on!!"

Rikku looked sheepishly at Baralai.

"You told her too??" shouted Gippal irritably. "I can't believe it!"

Baralai got up from his seat. "Gippal, calm down. I've thought about it, and Rikku can help us! She can help _you_!"

Gippal glared at Rikku and dropped into a seat in front of the desk.

"Fryd!? How?? She's just gonna laugh and embarrass me!" complained the Al Bhed with an eye patch. Then out of nowhere he fell silent and began sulking.  
(What!?)

Rikku saw the look on his face and immediately knew that she shouldn't play around. It was serious all right. She could even see it in his eye…his tired and worn, unshaven face…his messy, uncombed hair… She really took pity on him.

"Hey…" she started. She stepped towards him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "I won't laugh. Naymmo. I'll help you."  
(I won't laugh. Really. I'll help you.)

She said it so sincere that Gippal had to look up at her. Gippal was like a big brother to her, and even though they constantly teased each other and fought, they were only joking and having fun. Gippal always took care of her, no matter what. And now, it was Rikku's job to help him out.

After giving him a reassuring smile, Rikku placed her hands on her hips and turned to Baralai.

"So Mr.Praetor, sir, what do we do?"

Baralai was quite taken aback at her question.

"Umm…" he murmured. "I was thinking of discussing this with Gippal…"

Rikku looked at their friend, and when he gave no signs of showing a reply, she took matters into her own hands.

"Alright. What we gotta do first is to sort things out. Make everything clear," she announced eagerly. She made herself comfortable by sitting down on Baralai's desk, as he sat down on his own chair.

The two men looked at her questioningly.

"Gippal is in love with her. Right?" she asked in a very straightforward tone.

Baralai and Rikku looked at the Al Bhed for a reply.

With eyes on him, Gippal felt uneasy. "Um… Look… I dunno….. I guess… I can't describe it… It's like suddenly…I need her or something…" he said, looking down at the floor and frowning because of the complicated situation he was in. It was also very strange for him to be opening his heart to both of them.

Rikku smiled. "Awww, that's so sweet…"

When Gippal raised an eyebrow at her, she decided that she should continue.

"Okay, okay. But did she ever have a thing for you? You know, back in the old days, during that Crimson Squad thingamajig?" she asked curiously.

Both Baralai and Gippal contemplated on the matter seriously.

"I…dunno… She was sorta distant at first…" Gippal began.

"But later, she opened up a bit," added the Yevonite.

"Yeah… We had fun talkin' and laughin' 'bout random stuff." the Al Bhed chuckled a little bit, but to Baralai and Rikku, it sounded completely half-hearted. "But every time _I_ said something, she'd always have something really mean to say to me…"

Baralai laughed. "Well, you _were_ the noisiest."

"But still! It was like she had something against me! She was never that mean to you or Nooj!" he protested.

"Hey, I don't think you should take it seriously," said Rikku, who was totally used to her remarks. "She _is_ fluent in sarcasm after all. It's her personality!"

Gippal opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again. Then he crossed his arms and began to pout.

"You like that about her, don't you?" asked Baralai knowingly.

His friend only shrugged and kept his mouth shut.

Baralai sat thinking for a while, with his hand on his chin. Rikku watched him silently, knowing very well that he was brainstorming.

"I think," he started all of a sudden. "I think we need to find out about her feelings towards Gippal first, before we take any actions and commit any mistakes."

The leader of the Machine Faction only sat there with a worried expression on his face.

"I think that's pretty reasonable," agreed Rikku as she nodded her head. "Don't ya think, Gip??"

He merely shrugged at her question, the worry never leaving his eye.

"We'll take that as a 'yes' then," said Baralai with his eyebrows raised.

"So…Exactly how are we going to find out about how she feels towards Gippal?" Rikku asked her boyfriend.

Baralai only grinned and looked right back at her.

* * *

_Stupid…stupid…stupid Baralai. I can't believe he made me do this!_

Rikku was almost fuming when she got onboard the Celsius.

_He thinks he can get away with a little kiss?? That praetor has A LOT to make up for._

She couldn't believe her boyfriend forced her to take on this job and face Gippal's crush.

_ME. Out of everyone else. It is ME who has to face her. She hates me!_

Rikku had learned from numerous – more like countless – experiences that she was not someone to be fooled around with. Even if she believed that her friend was soft on the inside, she knew it took A LOT to break that hard shell of hers.

She had told Baralai and Gippal in advance that it would take a few days for her to get even a little bit of info out of her. Her boyfriend simply told her it was alright, as long as she'd get the job done.

Rikku sighed as she wondered if she would _ever_ get it done.

_Oh…she's soooo gonna rip me into a gazillion pieces…_

She was afraid of her. She really was. Because she never really got to know her, she never knew what she was capable of. There were times when she'd ask her a few harmless questions – well, according to her they were harmless – but it'd usually end up in the loss of respect points.

_How many do I have right now? Was it 40? Ohhhh boy. I am so dead._

"Rikku?" she heard a familiar voice call out to her.

The Al Bhed girl snapped out of her thoughts and looked up. She realized that she had made her way to the Cabin already, and that standing in front of her now was the person she feared the most.

She cracked a smile. "H-Hey Doctor P…"

* * *

(GAAASP) How the heck is Rikku going to handle the ever-so-frightening Doctor P?? You'll find out in the next chapter. :)

I love reviews, just so you know.


	4. Gippal’s Realization & Rikku’s Mission

Yay, update! :)  
I'm sorry it's kinda short, but I hope you'll like this chapter.

A big 'Thank you' to ALL of my reviewers and readers! I love you guys. :')  
Is it me, or am I getting sentimental these days?

* * *

Gippal's Realization / Rikku's Mission

After his visit to Bevelle to see Baralai, Gippal went straight back to Djose. Upon hearing his entrance to the temple, several Al Bheds greeted him. The leader of the Machine Faction only nodded in reply, and locked himself up in his room. He stepped into his bathroom decided to take a hot, relaxing shower. All this time, thoughts of _her_ ran about his head.

_Why the hell am I acting like this??_

Never in his life had he ever felt so insecure about his own actions and emotions. He was so restless… All he could think about was the same person he had been thinking about the past few months. And it was annoying the hell out of him.

He took off his clothes and stepped into the shower. As soon as he turned the knob, warm water hit his body and steam gradually began to fill the whole bathroom.

He didn't understand. He couldn't understand.

_There are plenty of other fish in the sea… Why does it have to be __her__? The most difficult of all??_

It was true. Other girls would practically drool over him. He was considered one of the biggest heartthrobs in Spira! But of all the hearts, he had to reject the willing, and aim for the hardest one to gain: Paine's.

_Cred. And I don't even know why._

(Shit.)

Honestly, he didn't. At least not right now, he didn't. Sure they were teammates and friends during the Crimson Squad – sure he flirted with her a once before, as a dare from Baralai and Nooj – but he never knew he felt _that_ way about her. It never happened to cross his mind. He never expected it.

He never expected that he would miss her so much…… Perhaps being away from her for more than two years had finally taken its toll…

He really did miss her; maybe more than he could even express it. He missed the way she acts so cold and stoic all the time… and the way she'd glare at him with those piercing scarlet eyes… and how she'd always seem to push people away. It was almost as if the reason he wanted her was partially because she was a challenge; because she was hard to get.

_No, not only that… She's beautiful._

Gippal laughed bitterly when he listened to his own thoughts. Yevon, he was turning too soft! He cursed himself for acting so much like a lovesick fool. He was Gippal! He shouldn't let anyone affect him so easily! Especially not a girl!

With a sigh, he turned the knob again and stepped out of the shower. Standing in front of the steamed-up mirror, he used his hand to wipe a portion of it so that he could see his own face. He looked into his only eye, something that he had grown accustomed to already over the many years.

_Gippal, you look like an idiot._

He was getting pretty frustrated. He couldn't even understand himself sometimes. Being away from her was almost killing him. He knew he wanted to see her, but at the same time he was uncertain of how he should approach her. She was someone he had to be exceptionally careful with. Ruining their friendship was the last thing he wanted to do.

He shook his head and stared down at the sink.

_Dammit. Why does it have to be so hard??_

He knew how to hit on and flirt with random girls whenever he went out, but that was different. That was just for fun… He never had a serious relationship with any of them! Heck, he never even called them, nor asked them out. They weren't special. They weren't Paine.

Gippal sighed heavily.

_I don't get it. Several months ago, I was fine on my own!_

But as he stood there staring at his own foggy reflection in the mirror, a part of him finally realized that he was tired of being alone.

* * *

"Rikku, are you alright?"

The Al Bhed girl snapped out of her trance and looked up at her friend.

"Um….yeah. Never better…" she replied, giggling nervously.

The two Gullwings members were seated at the table in front of the bar in the Cabin. Paine was drinking a can of soda while Rikku was poking the ice cubes in her glass of iced tea with her straw.

"You sure don't seem like it," remarked the warrior, observing the girl seated opposite of her.

Rikku looked up into her eyes with curiosity.

_She doesn't seem so touchy today… Strange… _she thought with consideration. Perhaps that would make her job easier?

They stared at each other for a while. Paine noticed her sudden change in attitude, especially how hesitant and uneasy she seemed.

Rikku then broke away from her gaze and looked back down at her drink. It really wasn't easy for her to confront 'Doctor P'. It was kind of odd too. When Yuna was here, the three of them seemed to get along fine – talking, joking around, even laughing… But now that she left, and Rikku had to face Paine one-on-one…it felt pretty weird and so much more complicated than it used to be. Though she couldn't exactly place a finger on it, there was a noticeable change whenever she talked with her.

The Al Bhed sighed as she wondered to herself. She hadn't even thought of _how_ she was going to talk to her!

"You want to ask me something?" asked Paine all of a sudden.

Rikku snapped her head up in surprise. She did it so fast she thought she really heard it snap.

The blonde observed her friend keenly. Judging by the way she was still sitting at the table with her, totally unharmed, she figured that Paine was in a pretty good mood.

"Um…I dunno…. Sorta…" started Rikku tentatively.

Paine was quite puzzled at her behavior. Almost a year of sphere hunting together, she had never seen the bubbly Al Bhed girl like this.

"Well…ask away then," she told her.

To be perfectly honest, Paine liked Rikku. Sure she constantly had a way of getting on her nerves, but she found herself kinda attached to her at times. She knew emotions only get in the way, and she had learned how losing someone you loved felt terribly unbearable and painful. That was why she had been so distant at the beginning. She didn't want to get too close to Yuna or Rikku. She was afraid… But she couldn't help growing fond of Rikku, no matter how different or polar opposites their personalities were. She was like a little sister to her…like the sibling that she had always wanted to have. Sometimes she'd even catch herself laughing over the girl's foolish antics. She really couldn't help herself. Of course she'd never admit all of this out loud to her friend though.

Paine sat there, watching Rikku's eyes dart from here to there, obviously arranging her thoughts in her head. The Goth was surprised that she was actually thinking before speaking, a rare occurrence when concerning the Al Bhed.

"Well?" asked Paine, her eyebrows raised. Instead of saying it in an expected impatient tone, she said it rather calmly.

Rikku looked up at her friend, wondering how in the name of Yevon she should start this conversation.

"Er….How… How are you today?" she questioned. The way she said it made her want to slap herself. She was taken aback when Paine chuckled slightly.

"Rikku, I promise I won't hurt you," she told her with a small smile. She obviously noticed how tense the blonde girl was. "I'm alright… Not particularly fine, but not bad either."

"I see…"

Paine watched her friend carefully, knowing very well that it wasn't what she had intended to ask.

An awkward silence fell between them. Paine sighed and took another sip of her soda.

"So, you were at Bevelle a while ago?" It was her turn to start asking questions.

"Yeah…" she replied. The way she looked at her made her flush a bit. Paine still wouldn't stop teasing her about Baralai.

"So what'd you do there?" she asked as casually as she could, but ended up smirking instead.

"None of your business, thank you very much!" said Rikku as she crossed her arms.

The suggestive look still hadn't left the warrior's face.

Rikku sighed. "I was just chatting with Baralai and stuff. Nothing much!" she said, trying to keep a straight face. "Gippal was there too."

She observed closely as Paine raised her eyebrows at the mention of Gippal.

"Really?" she asked with a hint of interest that she tried to cover. "What was he doing there?"

"Oh, he was just talking about some machina stuff with Baralai," the Al Bhed girl managed to say without batting an eye.

"Oh…" she replied, deep in thought as she stared at her soda. "Well…the next time you see him, say 'hi' for me."

Rikku raised an eyebrow. "Who? Baralai or Gippal?"

Paine seemed to be surprised at her question, but thought twice before she answered. "Um…I dunno… Both of them."

Again, they sat without speaking for a moment. Feeling somewhat strange about her own reply, Paine stood up with her drink.

"Well…I'll be on the Deck," she told the blonde. "If you…still have to ask 'bout something, you know where to find me."

Rikku watched as Doctor P left the Cabin.

"Sure…" she whispered to nobody. Her mind was still racing with thoughts on how she was going to pry things out of her friend.

* * *

O.o Paine's acting weird. It's funny how she's causing so much trouble but doesn't know it. :D And Rikku's attempt at striking up a conversation. ROFL.


	5. Listen to the Thunder

I'm not supposed to update yet cuz I'm not done with chapter 6...(I like to write in advance)...but oh well. :D  
The title of this chapter came from a line from the song 'Thunder' by Boys Like Girls. It's an amazing song. I couldn't think of anything else for the chapter title so...I just went with that, even though it's really random. Haha.

Hope you like this chapter. :)

* * *

Listen to the Thunder

The next day had been quite uneventful. To be honest, after Yuna left the Gullwings to stay at Besaid with Tidus, everyday seemed to be uneventful. Spira was pretty safe nowadays after the whole Vegnagun incident. Now, the remaining members of the Gullwings were just running petty errands for friends or for people who needed help. No battles, no fighting…no nothing.

Paine was a person who grew bored easily. This was an attribute that Rikku had managed to pick up after the long time they had been together. She knew the warrior had intended to train at Macalania Forest the whole day today. Of all things, Rikku knew how she planned her schedule.

Paine was always finding something to do. In a way, she can be described as restless. But Rikku couldn't blame her. No more missions came, and it wasn't as fun when one of your teammates had left. Nowadays, Paine was only training, training, and training. She didn't have anything better to do really. On several occasions, however, she'd accompany Rikku on the errands she had to run for Cid, especially when he sent her off to somewhere dangerous and fiend-packed. This arrangement wasn't done by Rikku or her father. It was suggested and forced into practice by Paine herself. There was _no_ way she was letting the Al Bhed girl go alone to places where monsters outnumbered you six to one. She wasn't doubting Rikku's strength or ability, but she felt a lot safer being her personal bodyguard. However, Paine always forced herself to believe that the main reason was because she had nothing better to do.

Today, Cid had left a message with Buddy, ordering Rikku to retrieve something of his that he had left at the Thunder Plains. He claimed that he had lost his goggles somewhere in the ruins.

Upon hearing his instructions from Buddy, Rikku frowned. She was beginning to feel tired of her father bossing her around.

"Argh! I can't believe that of _all_ the Al Bheds that are working for him, he has to choose his own daughter for the job!" whined Cid's girl, complaining all over the Bridge. "Can't he see that I'm busy!?"

"Busy? Really now?" asked Paine with her eyebrow raised as she eyed the blonde.

Rikku looked up at her sheepishly. "Yes! Very, very busy, in fact. But since I'm such a _responsible_ and _helpful_ daughter, I'll do it for him," she replied with a grin. "Brother, to Thunder Plains!"

A groan from said brother assured Rikku that he had heard.

"Well, gotta get ready and stock up," announced the Al Bhed girl cheerfully before she exited the Bridge and headed for the Gullstore.

She was surprised to find Paine following her into the lift.

"I'm comin' with you," she said without looking at her.

"Oh, you don't have to…" replied Rikku, trying to sound reassuring. "I can manage myself."

Paine shot her a look.

"What??" asked the poor girl with confusion.

"_Thunder_ Plains? Fiends? Ruins?" said Doctor P in a warning tone, stressing every word. "I don't think so."

The both of them walked to the Cabin and began stocking up their supplies.

"Hey, I'll be fine!" insisted Rikku, attempting to keep her voice from wavering. She was a bit intimidated by the way Paine mentioned those factors a while ago, but she was also slightly touched that she was worried about her. She didn't want to seem annoying and ruin the day for Paine by dragging her along.

"Stop whining. I've decided, and I'm coming with you." From the way she said it, Rikku didn't dare to object.

"Alright, alright… But don't take me wrong!" she added hastily, as Paine began to exit the Cabin. "You know I'm not scared of thunder anymore!"

She heard her friend laugh. "Right."

* * *

A bright flash of lightning blinded their eyes for a split second, and immediately after came a loud crash of thunder that shook the ground frighteningly.

Paine smirked as she looked over her shoulder at Rikku.

"You coming?" she asked, clutching her sword at her side.

"…Of course, silly!" the Al Bhed girl managed a reply.

She took out her daggers and followed the warrior as she walked down the path to the ruins.

Although Rikku had 'overcome' her fear, it still had a way of intimidating her, even just a little bit. She wouldn't become completely terrified, but hearing thunder made her jumpy sometimes.

Not long after they passed the first lightning tower, they were ambushed by several anoles, lesser drakes and an oversouled bolt drake.

A lesser drake struck Rikku by surprise and caught her off guard.

"Careful," warned Paine as she slashed an anole, killing it in one hit.

Rikku quickly regained her posture and attacked the lesser drake that hit her. Soon, all of the fiends were defeated except the bolt drake.

Both of them attacked the oversoul fiend mercilessly. When Rikku stepped back to heal herself with a potion, she watched as Paine slashed it with one of her famous flametongues. The drake roared in defeat and fell on its side, dissipating into pyreflies.

"Finally," scoffed Paine, resting her sword on her shoulder.

Rikku giggled at her friend's impatience and healed her with a potion. "C'mon Doctor P, let's go!"

They continued their way. But a few moments later, they felt rain drops falling from the grey sky above. Rikku looked up at the rain clouds with disapproval, while Paine only sighed.

After taking a few more steps, they encountered an single armet.

"Oh, why do I even bother??" grumbled Paine, rolling her eyes.

The armet attempted to strike her but she dodged it easily. Without effort, the warrior killed it with a slash.

"Waste of my time…"

Several more encounters with fiends and ruthless butt-kicking later…they arrived at the ruins. It was dim, lit with an insufficient amount of torches.

"Oh poopie. How does Pops think we're supposed to find his goggles in such a dark place?!" exclaimed Rikku with displeasure.

"Found it," stated Paine simply, picking up the gear from the ground.

She shot a look at Rikku, who only replied with one of her grins.

"I suppose we're done now?" asked the Goth.

The Al Bhed only stared out of the entrance of the ruins with realization. It was raining Chocobos out there!

"Um…even if we want to go, I don't think we can…" she said, eyeing the heavy raindrops falling from the sky.

The sounds of thunder only grew louder, as well as the splashing noise of the rain.

"Well, maybe we can wait for a while…for the rain to clear up a bit," suggested the warrior. She put down her sword and sat down with her back against a wall, making herself comfortable.

Rikku agreed by sitting down next to her.

_Okay. Now I have another chance to talk to her._ she thought eagerly.

She took a glance at her friend. Now how was she going to do this again? She had a bad habit of forgetting.

"Hey…Paine?" asked Rikku with an uncertain tone. Gosh, she had no idea what she was doing.

"Yeah Rik?" she replied, with the nickname she gave her.

"Um…Well… What do you think of………uh…Baralai?" she asked with curiosity. She laughed inwardly because her boyfriend was the last person she had wanted to ask about, but she had no choice, because it'd become too obvious if she was too direct.

Paine raised her eyebrows. "Lai?" she questioned. "Uh…well, he's alright. He's a gentleman and he's pretty smart and all. I think he's the right guy for you…if that's what you mean…"

Rikku couldn't help but smile at her answer. Where in Spira was their conversation leading them to??

"Oh I see…" she said, nodding slowly. "Well, what about Yunie living with Tidus in Besaid?"

"Hmmm…" mumbled Paine as she thought to herself, "Well, one thing's for sure. Yuna's pretty patient in finding him and all. I'm just glad she isn't all heartbroken anymore."

The warrior shook her head and sighed. A surprising as it sounded, Yuna could be as annoying as Rikku at times; mumbling in her sleep, looking distressed and depressed, even sulking sometimes…

The Al Bhed giggled. "Yeah, I'm glad too. But sometimes, I wish she didn't quit the Gullwings…" she said with a hint of sadness.

"Why? Cuz now you're stuck with me?" asked Paine, shoving her off balance.

"Hey!"

Rikku pushed herself back up to find her friend smirking at her.

"Well, what if I said 'yes'??" she countered, sticking her tongue out at her. "Cuz Doctor P is always so mean to me!"

Paine only rolled her eyes. "Oh really? And I thought I've been unnecessarily nice to you these past few days, answering your weird, random questions without hurting you."

Rikku's smile only grew wider. "Okay, okay. You _have_ been nice," she admitted.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, listening to the splattering of the nonstop rain outside.

"Hey Doctor P?" asked Rikku all of a sudden.

"What…?" she asked in return, slightly irked because of her constant use of the nickname.

"What do you think about Gippal?" asked the Al Bhed without looking at her.

Paine was slightly taken aback with her question.

"Umm…w-what do you mean?"

Sensing her hesitation, she tried to cover up a bit. "Um, I mean, _I_ don't really like him, cuz he's SO annoying and mean sometimes. He keeps calling me 'Cid's girl' and never calls me by my name!" she complained. She took a short glance at her friend, trying to hide her own nervousness.

"Well…" began Paine diffidently. She really didn't know how she was going to answer. "Gippal _can_ get annoying sometimes…and cause trouble and chaos that is uncalled for ––– probably a lot more times than what we give him credit for... Yeah he can be an idiot and a rude show off, but I guess his intentions are good."

She smirked at her own answer, and how she completely insulted him.

Rikku stared at her blankly and tried to take it all in. No doubt she was shocked at what the warrior had just said, but in her head, she forced herself to make a mental note of her words.

_So does that mean she likes him? Or does it mean the opposite??_ she thought to herself with confusion.

She had learned from the past that the things Paine said were not always true; sometimes it could mean the total opposite. Was this one of the cases?? Or did she really despise him?

_Well, she said 'his intentions are good'…and she's smiling…and she doesn't look all pissed off…_ thought the Al Bhed uncertainly.

Yevon, why was Paine so hard to read?!

But before she could ask anything more she was cut off but the warrior.

"Well, looks like the rain had stopped. Let's get outta here."

* * *

I absolutely love Paine's flametongue. :D  
If I made any grammatical or spelling errors, please let me know. I don't think I reviewed and edited this chapter properly.


	6. More Questions

Whoooa. An update that is long overdue.

* * *

More Questions

After dropping by Bikanel Desert to return the goggles to Cid, the two girls boarded the Celsius again. When they entered the Bridge, Shinra unexpectedly called Rikku over, telling her that she had a call from Bevelle.

Upon hearing this, the Al Bhed girl gave Paine a quick glance, (and was relieved that she didn't catch her eyes), and swiftly made her way to Shinra.

The wiz kid typed several buttons on the keyboard and out came Baralai's face on the screen. Knowingly, Shinra sighed and turned away, giving Rikku some room.

"What now??" she whispered, trying to keep her voice down. She felt Paine's crimson eyes on her back.

Baralai looked nervously at the scene before him. He managed to make out Paine's figure behind his girlfriend's.

"Hi Rikku. How's it going with that…thing I asked you to do for me…?" he questioned hesitantly.

"Um…..not so good…" she began, wincing as she forced herself not to look over her shoulder. "It's so much harder than it seems!"

Baralai sighed. "I know…I know… But _he_'s getting impatient…" he informed her. "But did you…get anything yet? Even a hint?"

She opened her mouth to say something, but in extremely terrible timing, Paine stepped up behind her.

"Oh, hello Paine," the praetor greeted, as well as warned the Al Bhed girl.

"Hey Lai," she replied. "How're you doing?"

"I'm alright… Just called to say 'hi' to you guys…and remind Rikku of that letter that she was supposed to give me," he told her with a small smile. Then he looked at the blonde as if he was begging for help.

"Yeah, yeah, I know already. I'll send it to you tomorrow, alright?" she said to him as naturally as she could.

"I really hope you'd get it _done_," said Baralai with signaling eyes.

Rikku only nodded and prayed that Paine hadn't noticed anything.

"Well, I have to go now; got a meeting in a few minutes. I'll see you two," said the praetor. And with that, he was gone.

Rikku sighed as she stared at the black screen, wondering again to herself how in the name of Spira she was supposed to fulfill her 'mission'.

"Done?" asked Shinra impatiently. It was rather a statement than a question, because he keenly moved back to his spot and began typing rapidly on the keyboard again.

Rikku placed a finger on her chin and the other hand on her waist, starting to brainstorm. Paine rolled her eyes at her friend's exaggerated movements.

"I dunno with you, but I'm starving," she told the blonde, as she turned to head for the Cabin.

"Oh wait, I'm hungry too!" exclaimed Rikku as she followed her.

* * *

The two girls were eating at the table in front of the bar. As always, they were silently grateful that Brother had hired Barkeep, and that the hypello knew how to cook.

The conversation with Baralai kept repeating in her head as Rikku ate quietly. After much thought, she had decided that she'd better get her job done today.

_Right. Now, what should I ask again…?_

She knew very well that she had to think carefully before blurting anything out – a constant reminder when facing Doctor P – but _how_ she should start the conversation always seemed to slip away from her.

_Okay. Well, I know that Paine doesn't hate Gippal's guts… But would she ever go out with him?_

Paine intuitively knew what was coming up when she saw the look on Rikku's face. More questions.

"Paine?"

"What…?"

The weary look on the Goth's face made Rikku giggle a bit. But the amusement in the blonde's eyes soon turned into curiosity.

"Have you… Have you ever thought of…" she began uncertainly. "…um…you know…getting a boyfriend?"

The Al Bhed flushed a bit when she saw the look of surprise in Paine's scarlet eyes.

_Why the heck is she asking me this? _thought the perplexed warrior.

"Uh…I…well…"

But Paine managed to catch herself before she let her guard down. "Rikku, that's none of your business!"

She immediately stood up and placed her empty plate on the counter.

Rikku almost cursed. She was so close!

Paine began to make her way up the stairs, and Rikku followed her. The Al Bhed girl watched as her friend pulled out a book and sat down on the sofa.

Much to the warrior's dismay, when she opened her book to read, a certain thief decided to sit down right next to her.

"Doctor P" whined Rikku at her side.

"Rikku, do me a favor and leave me alone!"

No! She was losing her chance! The door of opportunity was closing before her very eyes. She has to find a way to pry it out of her, one way or another.

"Paine," she called out to her friend. The warrior chose to ignore her this time.

"Paaaine. I just want to know... Do you like anyone?" asked the blonde as innocently as she could, with the cutest and not-annoying voice she could muster.

Doctor P, who was reading the same line for the twentieth time, winced and compelled herself to concentrate harder.

"If you don't answer me, I'm gonna keep asking you the whole day," warned Rikku with a grin.

When Paine made no response whatsoever, the Al Bhed began poking her friend on the side. After a few minutes of continuous nonstop poking, the Goth's patient grew thin.

"Rikku will you STOP doing that?" asked the warrior hotly.

"Do you, or do you not like anyone? That's all I'm asking right now!" said Rikku throwing her hands up in the air. Obviously she was losing her patience with her friend as well.

"Can you _please_ stop asking me these questions? I've answered the others. Give me a break!" she exclaimed, burying her eyes into the book again. Obviously it didn't prove to be successful, because a split second later, the girl sitting beside her spoke up again.

"Do you like anyone?! Or a crush even?" asked Rikku, gazing at the warrior irritably. "And stop avoiding the question!"

Paine only turned her body away from her. Sighing crossly, Rikku got up and sat down on the other side of her friend so that she could try to read her face.

What a surprise she got when she saw that Paine colored, as if from blushing.

_Oh! So she __does__ like someone!_ realized the blonde. At the back of her head, there was a tiny nagging that hoped for the special 'someone' to be Gippal.

Suddenly, Paine's piercing orbs looked up and met hers with a glare. Rikku gulped nervously and moved back a few inches.

But the Al Bhed's hopes weren't all gone yet. She had at least one last shot.

"Can you tell me who it is?"

"RIKKU!"

"Okay, okay!"

And she ran at breakneck speed down the stairs and out of the Cabin, giggling uncontrollably.

* * *

Eh, sorry for short chapter. Writer's block. Just don't know WHAT to do with Gippal in the later chapters. Ugh, I don't even know if the story makes sense anymore...  
Please don't hurt me...!!


	7. Reporting to Praetor Baralai & the Gipst

Just couldn't resist another quick update, because the last chapter was so very short.

* * *

Reporting to Praetor Baralai and the Gipster

Although it wasn't much information, the Al Bhed girl had no choice but to tell them what she knew. Gippal's impatience caused her to go to Bevelle as soon as she woke up the next day. Luckily, Paine hadn't asked if she could come along. She had planned to train all day at Mi'ihen.

The Rikku sighed as she entered the gates of Bevelle, something she had grown accustomed to over her many visits to see the praetor, even before they got together.

She smirked at the thought of him.

_Wait, no Rikku! _she remembered and slapped herself mentally._ You have to stay mad at him for making you do all this!_ _He owes you big time!_

But of course, despite what her mind was telling her, she knew her heart would never allow itself to remain angry with the Yevonite. So she'd just have to pretend herself.

The servants and guards greeted and nodded at her respectfully as she passed by. She smiled back, never ceasing to be amused at the fact that she was their praetor's _girlfriend_.

When she entered through the temple doors, a servant stepped towards her and bowed.

"Good morning Miss Rikku. Praetor Baralai is waiting for you in his office with Sir Gippal," she informed her politely.

The Al Bhed girl thanked her and began to make her way to the praetor's office. Only after several times of walking through the seemingly endless hallways and corridors, she had managed to memorize the confusing left and right turns that brought her to her designated destination.

Before she knocked on the door, she reminded herself to be – or at least pretend to be – mad at Baralai. With a sigh, she tapped her knuckles softly against the hard surface.

A few seconds later, Baralai opened the door and smiled at her. Rikku only crossed her arms and gave him a glare.

"I'm here. What now?" she told him, trying her best to sound annoyed.

Surprise hit her when he leaned in and gently kissed her on the lips. He was so inviting; she really couldn't help but kiss him back. A part of her mind began to wonder whether it was only Gippal who wanted to see her, or Baralai too.

They pulled away from each other when they heard a faint laugh from behind.

Rikku had forgotten that they weren't alone. A blush crept up to her cheeks as she pushed Baralai aside and made her way to a seat by his desk.

"I'm still mad at you," she told her boyfriend as sat down and crossed her arms again, a pout on her face. The Yevonite thought it rather cute.

"I'm sorry," he apologized to her with a very sincere voice. "I'll make it up to you." Rikku was trying to prevent herself from looking at him; she hadn't seen him as he stepped up beside her and stooped down to kiss her on the cheek.

She forced herself to look angry. "Yeah, you better, Mister Praetor." Baralai smirked at her.

"Okay, okay! Enough with the flirting and all!" interrupted the impatient Al Bhed seated opposite of Rikku. When he got their attention, he immediately asked, "So you talked to her? Did she say anything about me? What'd you ask?"

After focusing all her attention to the young praetor, Rikku almost forgot the reason why she was here. She played her mind in rewind and tried to recall her conversations with the warrior.

"Hmm…Well, I remember asking her about what she thinks of you," she told him. Gippal leaned forward slightly, obviously eager to hear what she has to say. Baralai, standing next to Rikku with his hand resting on the back of her seat, listened intently as well.

"If I remember correctly, she said that you can be annoying and cause a lot of trouble; more than what we give you credit for. And something about you being an idiot and a rude show off," she told him in an 'as-a-matter-of-fact' tone. "But she said your intentions are good."

Gippal stared blankly at her for a moment, much like Rikku did when she first heard what Paine had said. It took a while for her words to sink in.

When the look of disbelief hadn't left her friend's face, Rikku added, "But she kinda smiled after she said it… I dunno what to make of it, but that's what she said."

"What else did you ask her?" questioned Baralai, looking down at her.

Fearing that she might seem too forgiving, she deliberately didn't look up at him.

"Well…I managed to ask her if she liked anyone…" started the Al Bhed girl hesitantly.

"Tuac cra??" asked Gippal when she had barely finished her sentence. His anxiousness and concern caused him to accidentally switch to Al Bhed. (Does she??)

"I think she does. She was kinda blushing," said Rikku with a small smile. In contrast, Gippal's eye widened with shock.

"Dammit!" he cursed, clenching his fists tight; a frown on his face.

Rikku was about to open her mouth when Baralai spoke up, "Gip, don't get frustrated so easily. What if that person happened to be you?"

The anger on his face left, only to be replaced by a look of disbelief. "I wish…" he murmured, thinking to himself.

"I think that there's a chance that person could be you. I mean, what other guys do she know?" said Rikku honestly. It was unquestionable that Baralai was excluded, for it was clear that they were friends. Besides, he was already taken. "Well…unless she likes Nooj…"

Gippal jumped to his feet at that statement. "No! Cra luimth'd!"  
(No! She couldn't!)

"I dunno, I'm just guessing here. But if you really want to win her over, you'd better act fast," warned Rikku.

Gippal fell silent and began to think to himself again. Baralai watched him. "Rikku's right. I think you'd have to act soon, now that we know how she feels towards you," he suggested.

"And exactly _how_ does she feel towards me?" countered Gippal irritably. He didn't exactly know what caused him to feel so.

"One thing's for sure – she doesn't hate you," Rikku told him confidently. "I think she might even like you. Sometimes, the things she says mean the total opposite!"

"I think so too," agreed Baralai. "You know her sarcasm. And she was never the one to show her emotions so easily. She may be a little uncertain with her feelings. I think it's up to you to straighten it out for her."

Gippal sank back down on his chair with an uncommon worried expression on his face. After a moment of silence, he finally spoke up.

"How?"

Even though this was an expected question, both Rikku and Baralai didn't really know how to answer it.

"Hmmm… Well, let's start by going over what she said," suggested the Al Bhed girl decidedly. "According to her – if you put it all together – you're a rude idiot and show off who causes trouble."

"With good intentions," added Gippal with a frown.

"Alright. Now, she mentioned that you're rude," said Baralai. "I think the best thing to do is to work on that."

"Hey! I'm not rude!" shouted Gippal with indignation.

The Yevonite only raised an eyebrow at him. "Not always, but perhaps a few manners would set you on the right track."

"Ahem, _table_ manners," corrected Rikku. "How's he supposed to go on a date with her if he doesn't have table manners?"

Gippal sank lower into his chair. "I'm going on a date with her?"

* * *

O.o


	8. Confrontation

Hmmmmmm. :D

* * *

Confrontation

"Don't slouch. Sit up straight."

"Stop moving your leg up and down like that, it's not polite."

"For Yevon's sake, I'm just sitting down and the both of you are criticizing me already?"

Baralai and Rikku gave each other a look, then stared back at Gippal. Yes, they definitely have to work on his manners.

"I think you shouldn't slouch when you stand too," added Rikku as she observed her friend, completely ignoring his previous comment.

Gippal only rolled his eye. "Look, I don't need this. I _know_ how to act like a gentleman," he insisted.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and a servant came in carrying a tray with three glasses of water.

"Thank you," said Baralai. The servant set the tray down on his desk, bowed politely and left.

"Oh thanks Lai, I'm parched," said Gippal, swiftly taking a glass and gulping down the water loudly, spilling some as he did.

The praetor sighed. It was part of his test. "Gippal, that's what I'm talking about. You need to learn to use your manners." His friend seemingly ignored him, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Gippal!" exclaimed Rikku. Her hands were on her hips now.

"Alright, alright! I'll act all appropriate and stuff," he grumbled. He sat down again, but didn't slouch anymore.

"Much better," commented the Al Bhed girl with a smile.

Baralai watched as Gippal sighed heavily. He knew his friend rarely acted serious. But he also knew that he'd change his attitude if he was in the presence of Doctor P.

"Gippal, we're just telling you that you should mind your manners," he calmly told him. "Would Paine, or any girl for that matter, like you if you acted sloppy and messy?"

The Al Bhed nodded his head slightly, but his face still showed signs of irritation. "Yeah, I get it, I get it."

"But as much as you should watch yourself, I think you should try your best to act as natural as you can, too."

"Act _natural_?" asked Gippal, slightly confused. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"He means: just be yourself!" interrupted Rikku with a grin.

"Hmm," mumbled Gippal. "Be myself and act proper? That's askin' a lot from me."

"C'mon Gip, I know you can do it. You're a ladies man, remember?" reminded Baralai with a small laugh.

Gippal squirmed in his seat uncomfortably. "I'm good with _ladies_ – not Doctor P!" he remarked as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "And since Cid's girl here is forcing me to go on a date with her, how in the name of Spira am I going to ask her out?"

All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door again. After given the permission to come in by the praetor, a young servant entered and bowed in Yevon.

"Praetor Baralai, a young woman that claims she is here to pick up Miss Rikku," she said diffidently.

"Done with her training already?" pondered Rikku aloud to herself.

Baralai turned back to the servant. "I see. Please let her in and escort her here."

The servant bowed again and left the room. Gippal sat looking at his Yevonite friend questioningly. "Who's here?" he asked, completely clueless.

"Well, I guess it's good timing…" said Baralai with a shrug. He deliberately didn't answer the question.

Gippal only got more annoyed when he saw an amused grin planted on Rikku's. "Who's here?" he repeated his question with impatience.

He got his answer when Doctor P stepped into the room.

* * *

Gippal looked as if he saw a spirit from the Farplane.

"Hey Doctor P!" greeted Rikku cheerfully. "You didn't train so long today."

Paine crossed her arms and gave her a none-too-pleasing look. Rikku thought she was probably still angry with the stunt she pulled yesterday. "Didn't feel like it," she said bluntly. She turned to the praetor. "Hey Lai."

Baralai really couldn't hide his smile. "Hi Paine," he replied. Then he rested his eyes on a certain Al Bhed sitting by his right.

"Oh, hey Gip. What are you doin here?" she asked when she caught sight of him. There was something about the way she said it that made all of them look at her. Or perhaps…they were just interested in her because she had been the topic of their discussions, and the main reason why all of them were here anyway.

"Hey Paine… Uh, nothin' much," responded Gippal, trying not to look at her. It didn't work at all. Once in her presence, all he wanted to do was absorb all of her features, engraving them in his mind. He hadn't seen her for a while now…and he found himself surprised at how pretty she was.

They all realize that he hadn't exactly answered her question. Because of his strange behavior, Paine continued to observe him, but didn't say anything. Gippal was feeling very uneasy, and he glued his eyes onto the marble floor.

"So…You train nowadays, Paine?" asked Baralai, breaking the awkwardness and tension between them.

The warrior looked up at his unexpected question. "Well, sorta," she replied. Then she felt like it was too short of an answer, and added, "There's nothing much for me to do."

"I see," said Baralai as he nodded. He stared hard at Gippal, trying to catch his eye. It was a perfect opportunity for him to ask her out! Gippal only took a short glance at the praetor, and resumed gazing at the floor. Rikku rolled her eyes at both of them. Guess it's all up to her again.

"Well, Baralai was just telling me a while ago that we should all go out and have dinner sometime," said Rikku, slightly louder to get Gippal's attention.

Paine only raised an eyebrow and turned to look at the Yevonite, as if to verify if it was true.

Baralai smiled nervously. "Yeah. I just think that it'd be nice to talk and hang out once in a while," he commented. "Right Gip?"

They all turned to the Al Bhed. Gippal shifted in his seat. "Uh, sure. Why not?" he replied with uncertainty.

Baralai took out his planner to check his schedules, as well as to make a pretext to avoid looking at Paine. If she caught his eyes, she'd know they were hiding something from her. Baralai was terrible at lying and concealing secrets.

"I think I'm free next Tuesday," he told them without looking up from his notebook. "I'm sure you have nothing to do too, right Gippal?"

"Well…" he began as he tried to recall whether he really had something to do at Djose. But the look that Baralai shot at him made him dismiss any work he thought he had to get done. "Um, yeah, I'm free too…"

Then both of them looked expectantly at Rikku. "I'm sure we are, too," she replied with a smile. This time, Paine shot her a look, which remained ignored by the thief as she was pretending to be totally oblivious of the fact that she spoke without consenting her friend first.

Seeing that a glare from Paine was all the reaction they got, and that she hadn't exactly protested to the idea, Baralai quickly spoke up. "Well, then it's settled. I think it'd be nice if we could have dinner together...maybe in…"

"Luca? How 'bout Luca?" suggested Rikku. "There's this pretty little restaurant not far from the plaza."

"Why not?" agreed the praetor, smiling at her eagerness. "What time, though?"

"I think seven thirty is good," recommended the Al Bhed girl. She couldn't stop smiling too. She knew Baralai had caught on to her plan.

"Alright," approved the young Yevonite with a nod. He was very well aware of the fact that _they_ were doing all the planning, and hadn't cared to stop and ask their friends if it was agreeable. But it wasn't as if he'd give them a chance to refuse. He turned to look at Gippal with an amused expression on his face.

His friend only frowned. He knew what he was doing. He knew they were setting them up. But then…it wasn't as if he could do anything to stop them. Moreover, he oddly didn't feel like he wanted to stop them.

When nobody said anything for a while, Rikku broke the silence again. "Oh! I just remembered that Pops wanted to see me this afternoon," she announced sheepishly to all of them, but mostly to Baralai. She had almost forgotten, since Buddy told her this earlier in the morning and she was still half asleep. "So…I guess I'd better get going now."

She looked intently at the praetor, obviously unwilling to leave. By now, she had long forgotten that she was supposed to pretend to be angry with him.

Without stalling any longer, she slowly stepped up towards him; she looked up at him as he looked down at her. Their eyes met with such tenderness and innocence, and remained locked in an instant. They seemed to forget everything else around them. Rikku leaned forward and kissed him softly on his lips. It was a little awkward to do it in front of their friends, but she couldn't help herself. She was in love with Baralai, after all.

For some reason, Paine felt a little uncomfortable and embarrassed when she saw them, and so she diverted her eyes to another direction. That was when she caught Gippal's eye. He was looking at her, with an expression she couldn't seem to comprehend; it had a mixture of emotions concealed behind it. She gazed back, and unexpectedly found herself caught up in the moment. Thoughts, ideas, and unanswered questions drifted into her mind. She only snapped out of her reverie when she heard Rikku speak.

"C'mon Doctor P, let's go," she said as she tugged at her arm with a giggle.

"Remember. Tuesday, seven thirty at Luca," reminded Baralai, watching his girlfriend with a smile on his slightly flushed face.

"You know I'd never forget," she responded as she winked at him. And she pulled at Paine's arm again, heading for the door. "Let's--go."

The warrior couldn't help but feel a little suspicious when she looked at the Yevonite, but she decided not to think about it at the moment. "See ya, Baralai. Bye Gip."

After giving the Al Bhed one last fleeting glance, she let Rikku pull her out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Baralai sighed and sat down behind his desk. "Yes... Definitely good timing," he remarked absentmindedly, as he was still thinking about Rikku.

He couldn't hold back a laugh when Gippal began grumbling and sulking to himself.

* * *

I don't understand why some people look at Yuna or Rikku, and go, "Oh she's so pretty!" Then, when they look at Paine they're all, "Oh, wow! She's so cool!" But can't they see that Paine's pretty too?? Cuz she IS.

Oh, well anyways, I hope you all enjoyed reading this chapter.


	9. A Secret

Time for an update.

* * *

A Secret

When Gippal was entering Bevelle the very next day, his mind was racing.

_Really. What made them think of such a thing?!_

Not long after Rikku and Paine had left Baralai's office yesterday, he received a call from Djose, telling him to get there immediately. He hadn't the chance to ask the Yevonite about the sinister plot he had contriving.

_I've got a bad feeling in my gut about this…_

A part of him already knew what was in store, but it was not comforting him in the least. The more he didn't want to think about it, the frequenter it came up in his head; a thought that somehow managed to frighten him.

_I'm going on a date with Doctor P tomorrow._ he thought ruefully as he made his way to Baralai's office.

When he went in, he saw that the praetor was at his desk scribbling rapidly on a piece of paper. He always seemed to be busy. Gippal never knew that his job had so much to do with paperwork; he rarely left his office. That was one tiny consoling fact to the state of grief he was in – that being the leader of the Machine Faction almost never concerned paperwork. He'd rather get dirty than sit at a boring desk all day.

Gippal plopped down on a chair nonchalantly as he always did when he visited. When Baralai looked up at him, he saw that the Al Bhed had a look of disapproval on his face.

"You're really enjoying this, aren't you?" asked Gippal with a frown.

The Yevonite smiled in reply, knowing what he meant. "Hey, you're the one who wanted me to help," he told him. "And so I'm _helping_."

His good humor did not affect Gippal. "So what, you and your girlfriend are just gonna ditch us tomorrow night?"

"I'm guessing so," replied Baralai as he continued with his work.

The Al Bhed sat there thinking to himself for a while. "I wonder what Doctor P will think of all this…" he pondered. "Probably gonna kill us all when she finds out."

Baralai finished off a letter he had been writing with his signature at the bottom, and sealed it in an envelope. "Yep," he answered, almost absentmindedly, as he occupied himself with reading some document.

Gippal huffed and leaned back into his chair. _Man…what am I supposed to do with Paine alone?_ he asked himself. Half of him wanted to go on the date – if you could really call it a 'date' – and the rest of him was afraid to do so. Gippal, the leader of one of the most significant Al Bhed groups in Spira, was terrified of something. And for once, he admitted that he was.

"Lai, I'm not so sure about this whole thing…" he began tentatively. "I mean…me alone with Doctor P for one whole evening? I don't think it's gonna work out."

Baralai stopped working. "Gippal, have a little trust in yourself," he encouraged. "I actually think she likes you. And you know I'm not just saying it."

Gippal looked back at his friend and knew he meant it. But it was far from erasing the doubt in his head. "Well, how'd you know she likes me?"

The praetor paused for a moment, rearranging his thoughts and notions. Then he said, "There was something about the way she looked at you yesterday. And…of course there was that thing back in the Crimson Squad. I really hadn't noticed it before, but the more that I think about it, the more convinced I am…"

"What thing?" asked Gippal curiously.

"Well, you know how she'd always fight with you verbally, and sometimes physically even?" started the Yevonite as his memories were being retraced. "Well, it seemed as if she'd say something provoking on _purpose_ to get your attention. Hadn't you noticed that?"

His friend furrowed his brows. "She was just trying to piss me off or something," he said as an argument.

"But of all of us, she talked to you the most," reminded Baralai, almost positive now of their friend's behavior.

Because Gippal couldn't find anything else to say, he shrugged. He wanted to believe Baralai, but he was never sure about Doctor P and her actions.

He fell silent and let the praetor get back to his work. In his mind, he was wondering how his friend survived the boredom of working in an office. Sometimes, he felt like Baralai needed to chill and have some fun once in a while. Guess it _was_ a good thing he got together with Cid's gal. The bubbly Al Bhed girl was sure to drag him out of his dreary state. And as much as he needed her, she needed somebody to love and take care of her as well. There really was no one else better for the job.

Gippal carried on with his constant drabbles about Paine, and Baralai's relationship with Rikku, when a curious thought came up.

"Hey Lai," he began casually, examining his gloves as he opened and closed his fists, having nothing else to do.

"Yes?"

"Do you and Rik make out a lot?"

Baralai looked up from his work with disbelief. "What?" he asked, thinking that he had heard wrong.

"I said: Do you and Rik make out a lot," repeated Gippal, ironically in a tone much more serious than the question itself.

The poor Yevonite blushed profusely. "Well, I… Uh… I… W-Why do you want to know again?" he stuttered.

Gippal shrugged. "I dunno. Just wondering about it, since you two are together and all... And I…haven't really, you know…exactly kissed anyone before," he answered reluctantly, slightly embarrassed himself. "So…I was just…wondering what it was like…"

Baralai looked at him with surprise. The Gipster had never gone as far as kissing somebody before? That was _definitely_ something hard to believe.

"You haven't…? Not even once?" questioned the praetor with doubt in his voice.

"Nope.."

"Seriously?"

"Sheesh, do I have to spell it out for ya or somethin'?" said Gippal with exasperation as he rolled his eye. He may be known as a ladies man and a flirt, but hadn't they realized that all of that was just for fun and amusement? Sometimes it was as if they expected him to have slept with every single girl in Spira – though, that may be _too_ much of an exaggeration..

"Well, I must admit that I am _very_ surprised at your inexperience…" commented the Yevonite.

"Hey, hey! Why you gotta make it sound so bad? I'm saving me and my handsome face for the right gal," he defended with a grin.

"Which is Paine," Baralai finished off for him, smiling as well.

At that moment, there was a knock on the door. And as soon as the praetor said 'Come in', Rikku entered the office.

"Hey Gippal," she greeted him with a grin.

Her friend looked right past her and kept his eye on the door. "She's not here, is she?" he asked nervously.

"Don't worry, she's at Kilika. She's getting her sword fixed," replied the Al Bhed girl as she walked straight to Baralai's desk. Without saying anything more, she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

As Gippal watched the two of them with their gaze fixed on each other, he secretly wondered if he could ever do the same with Paine.

"Ahem," he interrupted when they didn't seem to move. Baralai blushed while Rikku sat down on a chair with a giggle.

"So Cid's gal, would you kindly explain to me what I'm supposed to do with Doctor P tomorrow?" he asked her with hint of irritation in his voice.

"Well," she started, smiling because he knew he'd be left alone with Paine. "Just do whatever you would have done with me and Baralai there."

"Like what?"

"Talk! Like, things you used to talk about when you two were in the Crimson Squad and all," she answered.

Gippal frowned. What did they talk about back then? Their mission, the weather, Nooj's snoring at night, Baralai's sleep-talking… He gave Rikku an uneasy look.

"Look, you'll do fine!" encouraged the Al Bhed girl. "You two are friends after all. Just chat like you normally do – as friends."

He only gave a mere nod in response. Suddenly, a commsphere on the desk beeped and blinked out of nowhere. It turned out to be a call from Bikanel Desert.

"Praetor Baralai, is Gippal there?" asked an Al Bhed woman wearing goggles.

"Yeah, what is it Nhadala?" replied Gippal as he pushed Baralai aside to make way for himself.

"They've dug up something in the Southern Expanse. Need you to check on it," she said in a very business-like tone. "A hover will be waiting for you here." And with that, the commsphere turned off.

Gippal sighed. "I've always hated that woman," he grumbled as he returned Baralai his spot.

"So I guess you'll be going?" questioned his Yevonite friend.

He nodded halfheartedly and turned towards the office door. But before he even reached it, he spun back around again.

"Lai, about that thing I asked you earlier," he began hesitantly. "Any tips?"

The young praetor returned his stare with confusion. It was only after a while did he remember what Gippal meant.

"Uh...Gip, I can't really help you much… I'm not very good at things like that," answered Baralai, as his face began to color. "But good luck," he quickly added with a reassuring smile.

Gippal only shrugged and turned away.

"Remember! Try to be polite, and be yourself!" reminded Rikku before he closed the door.

"Yeah, yeah," they managed to hear his muffled reply. After the sound of his footsteps gradually faded, they turned to look at each other.

"What was that thing he asked you?" questioned Rikku curiously.

Baralai blushed and shifted uncomfortably. "Oh…it's nothing…"

She immediately became suspicious. "Tell me!" she insisted.

He sighed and told her that Gippal had previously mentioned that he had never kissed anyone before, and that he probably wanted tips on how he could make a move on Paine or something of the sort.

Rikku couldn't help but laugh when she heard. "I _cannot_ believe it! I thought Gippal would've known how to do all of that stuff!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms into the air for emphasis. She really didn't want to make fun of their friend, but she couldn't resist. His being one of Spira's most well-known, _alleged _womanizers was nothing but a face. If Gippal had never gone as far as kissing, then Baralai would be considered to be more experienced in that area than he was! To Rikku, that was enough to make her crack up.

But eventually, after all her laughing, her grin turned into a smirk. "And you told him _you_ weren't good at things like that?" she asked, looking at him seductively.

"Well…" He watched as she left her chair and sat on his lap. "I don't think I am…" he whispered to her softly.

She slid her arms around his neck and rested her head on his.

"Well, I do."

And she closed the gap between them.

* * *

Oh, I hope I didn't make Gip too OOC... I know in this fic, I kinda made him all 'innocent' and crap. :S (Just cuz I _want_ him to save himself for Paine...)


	10. Just Go!

Oh man. Hope you'll forgive me for this chapter. It's like...a bunch of segments... And not so long...  
Oh, and I wanna say thanks to ALL of my reviewers and readers. :D

* * *

Just Go!

Gippal was on edge ever since he woke up that morning. When his fellow Al Bheds talked to him after he left his bedroom, he either nodded or shook his head, speaking only when it was absolutely necessary. He was jumpy, and doing a lot of thinking too. It was not doing him any good.

He sighed as he worked on repairing a broken machina in the temple.

_Man… WHAT am I gonna do?_

He unscrewed several bolts and took out the metal cover at the back of a droid. He looked inside and saw that several wires were loose and detached. Sticking his hands inside, he deftly fixed the problem in a matter of seconds.

_What would Doctor P say when she discovers it's only the two of us?_

He replaced the metal cover and screwed it back on. Gazing at his finished job, he slowly stood back up.

"E drehg ed'c veqat. Dno du –––" _**thud**_ "Oooow! What the??"  
(I think it's fixed. Try to –––)

He rubbed the back of his head, staring at a giant protruding piece of metal from the machina he had worked on.

"Gippal, yna oui ymnekrd?" asked a nearby Al Bhed man. It was strange. Gippal almost never lost concentration when working with machina, and was usually very aware of his surroundings.  
(Gippal, are you alright?)

Grumbling something inaudible, his leader stalked back into his room, with his hand on his head.

* * *

"Rikku, I'm going now!" shouted Paine irritably to the Al Bhed upstairs.

"Where are you going?" asked the girl as she leaned over the railing.

The warrior sighed. "Training."

"Where?"

"Mushroom Rock Road."

"Now?"

"Yes, Rikku! I am _going_ to _train_ at _Mushroom Rock Road_, right _now_!" she responded with exasperation. "Do you really have to ask so much?"

The blonde grinned in reply. "Remember, _we_ have to be at Luca by seven thirty tonight," she reminded.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," said Paine, turning away and heading for the lift.

Rikku smiled with satisfaction as she watched her friend exit the Cabin. _Let's just hope she won't kill me when she finds out…_

* * *

"What?!"

"Just tell her I have a sudden urgent meeting."

"Why don't _you_ tell her yourself?"

"Gippal, just tell her when you get there," insisted Baralai.

They were communicating through their commspheres, one in Gippal's room, and another in the praetor's office.

The Al Bhed fell silent. Baralai observed him and saw that his friend was pretty nervous.

"Gip, it's gonna work out fine. Just tell her naturally: 'Oh, Lai called earlier and said he had this meeting, and that he's sorry he couldn't come'," reassured the Yevonite. "And pretend that you didn't know that Rikku's not going to be there."

Gippal only gave him a disapproving look, but didn't say anything.

"Hey, don't look at me like that," said Baralai in an amused tone. "Who knows? You might win her heart after tonight."

Gippal considered his words and the situation very carefully.

_Well…We're just friends hanging out… It doesn't even have to mean anything. I guess I don't have anything to lose…_

He heaved a sigh. "Alright…Whatever."

Baralai smiled. If he could, he would've given his friend a pat on the back. "Good luck Gip. If you want, you can come over tomorrow to talk all about it," he offered kindly.

With a nod, he signed off.

* * *

At six thirty, he began to prepare himself. He took a shower and made sure to scrub off all the grease and dirt he got from working earlier. He carefully gelled his spiky hair the way he wanted it to be, and put on his cleanest looking clothes. He even cleaned and shined his muddy boots. When he was all ready, he stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom and studied his reflection.

_Okay, this is not really a date. Just chillin and hangin with a friend. That's all._

After repeating it in his head several times, he ran a hand through his hair and sighed. Then he turned off the lights and left his room, heading for Luca to meet the dreaded Doctor P.

* * *

"Doctor P! Doctor P!"

"What do you want Rikku?"

"I can't go!"

"What?" She looked up from her book.

"I can't go," repeated the Al Bhed girl. She tried her best to put on a false pout. "Tonight… To Luca with you, Gippal and Baralai. I can't go."

"Why not?" asked the warrior.

"Got a call from Pops a few seconds ago… He needs to see me at Bikanel and wants me to deliver a package or something." she explained hesitantly. "Said it was urgent."

"Oh…" was all Paine managed to say. There was a slight pause, and both of them exchanged glances.

"You should still go though," said Rikku with a small smile.

Paine looked at her friend curiously. "You sure?"

"Yeah! Go and hang out with Baralai and Gippal. You've been training so much nowadays… I'm sure you'll have a nice time," she told her, grinning.

"Hmm… Well, alright," agreed the warrior with a shrug. Then she went back to the book she was reading. Rikku imperceptibly let out a breath she was holding.

"It's seven ten now. I'll tell Brother to drop you at Luca," she told her. Doctor P merely nodded. When the Al Bhed girl turned away, she really couldn't stop smiling.

_Let's hope everything will turn out fine!_

* * *

O.o Right now, everything seems to be going as planned... Will it turn out fine?? Or will Gippal make a complete fool outta himself?? OMG. :p


	11. The Date: Part One

Yeah, the last chapter was pretty short. So I hope I can make it up to you guys. :)

* * *

The "Date" – Part One

He spotted her at a distance as he approached the plaza. Though this gave him a little time to brace himself, he really thought it would've been a lot easier if he _hadn't_ seen her. His mind demanded that he calm down, but his heart acted otherwise, beating faster and faster every step he took towards her. It was a windy evening, but Gippal felt like he had just finished running a marathon. To his utmost dismay and fear, as soon as he walked past the monument, she saw him.

"Hey Gip," she greeted casually. Or she _tried_ to greet him casually, for it was evident that she was quite surprised that he came alone, judging by her eyes darting around him. Almost immediately, suspicions and thoughts flooded her mind.

"Hey Doctor P," he replied with a weak smile. He stuck his hands into his pockets, afraid that his nervousness might cause him to start fiddling with things, or cause them to shake.

"Where's Lai?" she asked. The Al Bhed was almost surprised at her question.

"Oh! Lai? Oh yeah, he called me a while ago," Gippal began. He had practiced saying this in his head earlier. But why was it so hard now?! "He…He said something about a meeting. Yeah. It was very urgent, and a last minute thing…"

Paine only nodded slowly, observing him, and yet somehow unable to keep her gaze on him for long.

"Well, Rikku's not here either…" she told him tentatively. "Cid had a job for her."

"Oh," was all Gippal managed to say. There was something different in her voice that he couldn't quite distinguish. Though her diction wasn't, she almost sounded formal.

They stood in a very awkward silence for a moment. Then Gippal, wanting very much for this evening to pass by smoothly, desperately dug for something in his head and spoke up. "Hey, I'm pretty hungry. So c'mon, let's go grab a bite somewhere." He tried to say it as openly and invitingly as he could. He watched her nod in reply, and the both of them began to walk down the street.

Although it was indeed a weekday, there were plenty of people out. Some busily rushed up and down the avenue, while others strolled peacefully in contrast. It was difficult to say whether the Al Bhed and his companion walked hastily or leisurely, for though they were not in too great a hurry, they were also not considered relaxed and laid back as they made their way down the lively street in search of a good restaurant.

"Was _that_ the place Rikku wanted to go to?" asked Paine all of a sudden, calling the attention of her friend.

Gippal followed her eyes and saw a small and dimly-lit restaurant that seemed as if it only had room for two sets of customers. Its outer walls were of brick, with vines running up acting like curlicues. The atmosphere it gave off was peculiarly fantasy- and dream-like, as if the restaurant itself was taken from a fairytale storybook. The warrior considered it 'drastically over-romantic'.

The Al Bhed winced at the sight. "I wouldn't go in there even if she paid me to," stated Paine with such firmness that it seemed like all good humor had drained from her.

Without saying anything more, they continued on their way. Eventually, Gippal stopped in front of a decent-looking and not too crowded restaurant. He looked at Paine, as if questioning her. She shrugged; it was unquestionable that this one was better than the last. And so, the both of them agreed silently and walked in.

A young waitress greeted them as soon as the couple entered. She was dressed in a miniskirt and a top that revealed too much for it to be appropriate for her job. It's a wonder how she was allowed to serve customers in that outfit, much less not getting fired.

"Table for two," said Gippal as he watched her eyeing him. "Please."

"Right this way, handsome," said the girl flirtatiously as she led them to their table. Or perhaps she was only leading Gippal, since she hadn't paid attention to the warrior. The waitress stopped at a small table near the back of the restaurant, where it wasn't so stuffy and crowded. There was a small window with a nice little view of the streets of Luca.

_Oh right! Gentleman!_ thought Gippal suddenly, almost panicking. He quickly stepped over to a chair and pulled it out, giving Paine an expecting look. And oh, what a reaction he got! Both Paine and the waitress stared at him like he was some crazy eight-headed Chocobo-eating monster. That was exactly what Gippal had feared, but he tried to maintain his composure. He gazed at Paine and slightly inclined his head, signaling for her to take the seat. Realizing that he was serious, she hesitantly complied and let him help her into her chair.

"Uh…thanks…" she mumbled a reply. She couldn't keep herself from wondering what had gotten into her friend. It was as if he was possessed or something! And Paine wouldn't want to think that Shuyin had come back for other businesses he hadn't finished with.

Similarly, the waitress looked pretty stunned at his act. But she was mostly surprised because she hadn't even noticed that Paine was there. Heck, she hadn't even seen the silver-haired woman come into the restaurant in the first place. She watched as blonde man sat himself down on the opposite chair.

_Are they together?! A hottie Al Bhed like him, dating a scary-looking freak like her? Perhaps this is just a pity date or something. Maybe I should give him my number later… _And the ditsy waitress continued on in her thoughtless mind. All the while, Paine noticed that the girl's eyes had never left the Al Bhed.

"Could we have the menu, please?" he asked politely, when all the waitress did was standing there and staring at him.

"Oh, sure cutie," she said with a giggle that made Paine want to stab her with a fork on the table. The waitress gazed at Gippal for a moment more, and then finally left to get what was being asked.

Paine frowned, propping her head up with her hand, her elbow resting on the table. Her thoughts soon travelled back to the stunt Gippal had just pulled. Now what in the world of Spira caused him to do that? Helping a 'lady' into her seat? Paine felt like she was missing something here. Though she was curious about her companion's actions, she really couldn't bring herself to ask him directly. She just couldn't. So she decided not to dwell much on it for now, quickly dismissing her suspecting thoughts and assumptions.

She looked out the window as an excuse to avoid his gaze; for some reason, she knew he was watching her. She didn't know why, but she didn't want him to catch her eyes.

"Here you go!" she heard the waitress's perky voice. She reluctantly peeled her eyes away from the window. The girl handed them a menu each, all while she was staring at Gippal, _again_. Paine frowned. The waitress was one of the most annoying girls she had ever met; she felt like she wanted to punch her in the face. But as she continued pondering, she couldn't help but wonder exactly what it was that made her annoyed. Sighing mentally, she temporarily decided that it was because of the girl's shrill voice. See, when Doctor P found something to hate, she needed to justify a reason for hating it. And this was enough to satisfy her for now.

The both of them scanned over the menu to find something they liked. Fortunately, it wasn't one of those fancy, expensive restaurants. The prices happened to be reasonable, and to tell the truth, the food didn't sound half bad. They quickly ordered their food, realizing how hungry they were. Paine glared at the waitress when she merely glanced at her for a split second as she took down her order.

_What a bitch._

Paine immediately let out a sigh when the girl finally left them, after giving her companion one last wink. It took a lot of willpower not to stick her boot out and trip her – but she didn't. She looked over at Gippal, to see what he was making of this whole situation. She was surprised to find that he had been gazing at her again, except when she looked at him, he swiftly turned away.

Gippal had never been so nervous in his entire life, but he tried his best not to show it. Yevon, what a difficult situation he got himself into! And the waitress's constant flirting hadn't helped either. The only thing he could do was ignore her and hope she'd give up. Words could not describe how relieved he felt when the girl left them alone.

He stole a glance at Paine again. This time, she was looking out the window. Gippal quietly sighed, recalling what he did minutes ago. He secretly wished to himself that Paine wouldn't be able to see right through him and his actions. He knew she had always been sharp, but hoped she wouldn't notice or suspect anything _yet_. He really didn't want to ruin anything between them.

_Hmph. If there __was__ anything… _he thought. He glanced at her again, then realized the awkward silence between them once more.

"So…" began Gippal tentatively. Paine's head almost shot up, obviously not expecting him to speak.

"So how's it going? I mean, with…y'know…traveling, sphere hunting and all…" he said timidly, not exactly knowing how to start a conversation with her.

"Um…Well…everything's alright I guess," she started. She didn't look up at him as she spoke. "Can't say we're sphere hunting anymore. We've got no more reason for that, now that Yuna's found what she's looking for."

Gippal nodded slowly as images of the former High Summoner and her blitz-player boyfriend popped up. "So, you don't do much nowadays?" he asked.

Paine felt like it was sort of rude not to look at a person when spoken to, so she forced herself to meet his gaze. "No, not much…" she answered. "I train from time to time.. Or help Rik with an errand or two."

He chuckled, and she though she didn't exactly know why, she immediately felt the whole situation ease up a little because of him.

"Cid's gal needs help to do her job? Can't manage herself?" he said with a grin.

Paine smiled a bit. "Well, let's just say I can't trust her to manage herself. But I don't go with her all the time, only when her father sends her off somewhere teeming with fiends."

He nodded understandingly, chuckling to himself. _Boy, Paine's pretty protective of Rik, ain't she? She growing soft?_ he thought. He didn't dare say it aloud, for it might earn a glare from the warrior. And he was not willing to risk _anything_ that'd make her displeased for even a second. Not tonight.

A waiter soon came up and poured a glass of water for each of them. Both mentally thanked Yevon that it wasn't the girl who came to serve them. If it was, Paine felt she would've lost control of herself and really punch her in the face.

The two of them quietly took sips from their glasses, the first reason for doing so was because they were kind of thirsty, and the second because they had nothing to do and didn't want to just sit there and space out into nothing. But Paine felt that Gippal had at least tried to start a conversation with her, so it was only fair that she do the same, and not let the familiar awkward silence fill in again.

"What 'bout you? How's the Machine Faction?" she asked him, feeling the coldness of the glass of water through her gloves as she clasped it. She observed that the Al Bhed was attempting to draw or write something on the dew of his cool glass.

"Oh, well… same old, same old," he responded with a shrug. "Not much machina malfunction anymore, and if they do, the other guys can handle it without consenting or asking me 'bout stuff."

"Guess now that the whole Vegnagun thing is over, Spira had really calmed down," remarked the warrior. Her friend nodded in agreement, bringing his glass of water to his lips once more.

"Gets kinda boring sometimes…huh?" he said with a slight smirk.

"Yeah…" And she turned away again. She didn't know why it was so hard to look at him.

They sat without saying anything for a while. Gippal scanned his mind again, attempting to find something else to say, but came up empty. What _do_ you talk about with a girl you're in love with? He watched her carefully, and when his eye rested on her lips, he suddenly felt this great urge to kiss her.

He shook his head. _Yevon, get a hold of yourself Gip._ He looked at her again, glad that she still had her gaze fixed on the window and hadn't seen him. Strangely, they were running out of things to say to each other. It wasn't like this back when they were in the Crimson Squad. They were much more talkative and open with each other. Something has changed…but Gippal couldn't exactly place a finger on it. Was it a bad change? He wasn't sure.

Eventually, a waiter came up to their table with their food, cutting into his thoughts. To be honest, both of them were relieved at this little intermission. Though the main reason was because they were practically starving, they were also glad that they needn't make conversation anymore. However, the silence present when they were eating was no different than the ones a while ago. It was difficult to ignore it, but they did anyway.

Boy it's going to be a long evening.

* * *

To be honest, it wasn't going to end there... but the chapter was getting WAY too long. Let's hope I'll be able to write and finish part 2 by...Sunday! :D Sorry if it seems like a very sudden ending... Oh gosh, I gotta go to bed now. I'll be updating as soon as possible! Next chapter MAY be the last.

BTW, I love reviews. :


	12. The Date: Part Two

I am SO sorry for the delay... I meant to upload it earlier... I'll explain later. I guess this is the last chapter. :(

* * *

The Date: Part 2

Very soon, after the couple had finished eating, a waitress came to give them the check. Unfortunately, to both of their dismay, it was the same girl who brought them to their table.

"Here's your check, handsome," she said as she handed it to Gippal. He ignored the name she called him and took out his wallet.

"Gip…" started Paine. He saw that she was eyeing the bill.

"Hey, don't worry. I got it. It's all on me," he insisted. He gave the waitress the right amount of money, and even included a little tip.

"Thank you!" She beamed at him. "Hope you'll come again!" Then she looked around and inconspicuously slid a small piece of paper into his pocket, whispering 'call me' into his ear.

Gippal forced a weak smile. "Eh…thanks?" Then he quickly turned to Paine. "C'mon Doctor P, let's go."

From the restaurant, they began to head back to the plaza. Now that it was a bit later in the evening, the streets had calmed down. There was a light breeze, and even in his difficult situation, Gippal almost felt comfortable. He had his hands in his pockets as they strolled down the avenue.

_Oh wait, what's this? _he thought as he felt something in one of his pockets. He took out a piece of paper with the waitress's phone number. Without giving it a second thought, he crumpled it and threw it in the nearest trash can. When he looked back up, he saw that Paine was watching him.

"Hm?" he asked, raising his eyebrows slightly. She looked away briefly.

"Um…Thanks," she told him hesitantly.

"Thanks for what?" he asked with confusion. "Oh, the dinner and all… It was… It was nothing. You're welcome." And he smiled at her.

Eventually, they stopped by the monument. Oddly, they arrived there sooner than they had expected. Gippal nervously rubbed the back of his neck as he looked around the plaza.

"So… They gonna pick you up?" he asked. Paine didn't look at him when she nodded.

_Yevon. Why is it so awkward with her right now?_

"Well… Well, it…it was nice hangin' with you today…." he told her, stuttering.

Paine sighed heavily and closed her eyes. This was it. She couldn't take it anymore.

She spun around and gazed at him with her piercing scarlet eyes. "Gippal…what in Spira is wrong with you?" she nearly snapped at him. She didn't mean to say it so loud, or to sound so angry…

"W-What? What do you mean?"

"I mean… Is something the matter? You're acting so…weird… I think I'm missing something here," she told him, crossing her arms. "Look, I'll be honest with you. I just can't stand it anymore."

The Al Bhed stared at her. He didn't know what to say.

"W-weird?"

"Yes! Weird! There's that helping me into a seat thing…being so…I dunno, neat… talking about something that is actually sensible…" She turned away. "I don't know what you guys are trying to pull here."

"I…" started Gippal, looking at the ground. "Who do you mean?"

"Rik and Lai! They'd obviously been up to something. You know I'm not that dumb, Gippal. I notice things. I see things. I can sense when something mischievous is happening. Do you think I wouldn't be able to see it?"

"I…No! Of course I know you're not dumb…"

"Then tell me what in Spira is happening to you. Why are you like this?" she demanded, almost glaring at him. "Yevon, you hadn't even made one perverted remark the whole evening!"

"Hey!" he protested. The way she talked to him seemed accusing, and he really couldn't let it pass. "Can't a guy act decent for one day? You're saying it like I'm always a messed up womanizer!"

"Well, I'm just telling you what I expected from you! I mean…what in Yevon's name… You just come and act all gentleman-like suddenly, and you want me to respond to that naturally as if everything's normal?" Paine was gradually getting furious with the situation. Though their conversation started out quite calm, she was almost shouting now.

"I mean, seriously," yelled the warrior hotly. "_What_ are you trying to do here?"

She stared him down, and very soon, Gippal had to look away.

"Yevon, Paine… Why? Why does it have to be so hard with you?" he muttered, shaking his head. "Look…You want me to tell the truth? Alright, I'll tell the truth."

She continued to watch him with her arms folded, trying her best to look patient.

"Yevon… Look Paine. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done all this shit. Okay? I said I'm sorry. I'm sorry for acting like a freak; for acting like a moron. But it's so hard! You have no idea how difficult it is.. I don't _know_ what you like, or what you don't like. I don't _know_ what to make of your words and actions because sometimes, you don't mean it at all! Yevon… You're always keeping everything to yourself.. I'm sorry, it's just so hard to read you. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, dammit…" He sighed heavily. "I'm sorry I'm stupid enough to like you."

Paine had to look up at him when he said it.

_What? What did he say? _she thought, staring at his back with disbelief.

So it was true. He did like her. And now, everything seemed so much clearer to her.

She had the feeling in her gut ever since she saw him in Baralai's office a few days ago. She hadn't known exactly _what_ she was feeling. Moreover, she avoided it; repressed it to the back of her mind. She wasn't sure how she should handle it, or what she should do.

She was…afraid… She was uncertain of her own feelings for him…

Or perhaps, she just didn't want to admit them.

"What?" she asked, almost in a whisper.

Gippal still hadn't turned around to face her. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have dragged Rik and Lai into this… But…I just didn't know what to do. I've… This has never happened to me before.." With a sigh, he spun around and stepped towards her, his eye meeting hers. "I just need to know if…if there's a chance. A chance of something between us…"

Their gaze locked for what seemed like hours. A blush involuntarily crept up to Paine's face, and she was the first one to break it, averting her eyes to his shirt instead. Then she realized she had to answer him.

She sighed exasperatedly. "Only if you promise never to throw that gentleman crap at me like you did tonight," she told him in a serious tone, poking at his chest.

_Was that a 'yes'? _thought Gippal, his excitement rising. _Did she just say 'yes'?_

The Al Bhed really couldn't keep himself from smiling. Without thinking, he slid his arms around her and pulled her close.

"Alright, I promise," he told her, still grinning. "But I understand. I mean, you want the old sexy Gipster back. I get it."

Paine really had to laugh at that one. "Now aren't you getting a little too confident?" She had no idea why he still had his arms around her, and why she hadn't pushed him away yet.

When he still hadn't said anything, she peeled her eyes away from his. "Look Gip… I'm sorry if…if I'm always being so difficult and sarcastic all the time… But… I dunno, I'll try not to be…."

He smiled at her. And the next thing he did stunned the both of them. He pressed his lips against hers.

* * *

When they parted, both couldn't help but smile. Paine felt really silly to be feeling all those things she felt at the moment, but what surprised her was that she didn't mind. Only seconds after they pulled away, they heard the low humming of the Celsius gradually getting louder.

"Just in time," remarked the Al Bhed. Paine rolled her eyes at him.

They watched as it landed in an open area and began to walk towards it.

"So… you busy tomorrow?" asked Gippal with a smirk. "If you're not, you can always drop by Djose… I mean, I'm not doing anything."

Paine chuckled, walking towards the entrance of the airship. "Sorry Gip, I have to find somebody to fix my sword."

Gippal stood several feet away from her with his hands in his pockets. "I thought you got it fixed already!"

"The guy in Kilika said he didn't have the materials to do it." Now she stood right next to the ramp of the entrance.

"Hey, _I_ can fix it for you," said the Al Bhed, grinning even wider. "I'm free tomorrow."

Paine smirked and turned away, walking into the airship. "We'll see, Gippal. We'll see."

* * *

The moment she got into the Celsius, it took off from Luca. She sighed heavily as she walked up the stairs of the engine room.

"Hey Doctor P! How'd it go?" a familiar girlish voice sounded from the intercom.

The warrior frowned when she remembered. "Rikku!!"

* * *

END

Okaaay. Explaining time. I meant to upload earlier, but I didn't have time to actually finish writing this chapter.. I'm sorry if it's a little uh...messed up. But anyways, please let me know if I could do anything to improve it.  
See...let me tell you my little story... Right now, I'm in a dorm. A dorm of a boarding school in New England. And "Yevon" I'm kinda having a hard time here.. I'm new to literally everything. So I'd like to announce my temporary hiatus... OMFG, I gotta go now. Got a meeting. Uh...so anyways... Cya guys. Thank you SO much for reading and reviewing.


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